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Winter Cold

Thank You For These Unstoppable Rescue Missions

"If only you could feel the love emanating from the animals who are safe and cared for through your contribution, your heart would overflow with happiness," Harmony Fund Founder Laura Simpson said yesterday. "Some of the animals jump on us with excitement and want to be held in our arms. Others roll on the ground and ask to be pet. And still others are shy but their body language shows that they are beginning to trust. Animals know when they are in the presence of someone who cares."

Today we thank all of you who have been donating recently and we send out special thanks to our monthly donors. Together, you have been moving mountains for animals and providing food, shelter and veterinary care for homeless animals across several countries. Below are a few quick updates and we are hoping all of you will have a peaceful holiday season.

Elderly Rescuer Won't Be Alone During Cancer Treatment

Recently we brought you the story of Gorica Angelkovska who was terrified of spending another winter alone at her shelter in Serbia. After seeing photos of the physically demanding task of caring for more than 100 rescued animals, many of you rallied to help us hire a worker to manage the primary daily chores. We were very fortunate to find a local man named Mile who likes animals and is willing to work hard. Gorica has been emotionally moved by the generosity of people far, far away who have decided to help her keep the animals tucked securely in her shelter, which has become their home.

Several days after enjoying the bliss of hiring a worker and having reliable help and companionship at the shelter, Gorica was given some devastating news. It seems that she has both esophageal and colon cancer. She is in pain and feeling quite unwell. She is readying for surgery very soon.

Harmony Fund will further extend aid to keep the animals safe while Gorica fights for her life. We are weaving a strong safety net for this rescuer and the animals who rely on her:

1) Our new worker, Mile, will continue to work on the weekdays and assume all animal care tasks.

2) A second man will take on the weekend shifts of feeding and caring for the animals.

3) A caregiver with significant experience caring for the elderly will move in to help care for Gorica for several weeks.

4) A young family (husband, wife and son) have spent some time at the shelter and are considering taking on the daily operations fully if Gorica is unable to carry on. They have experience in animal care, and would add on a boarding area to the shelter so that they could be self sufficient in raising enough funds to make a living and care for all the animals. Gorica is excited about this possibility to have more help.

If it weren't for your help, Gorica would have suffered terrbily this winter trying to save her animals alone. Because of all of you, she has a chance to receive treatment and to have the peace of mind that her animals are safe while she focuses on her own survival. Thank you all for this truly amazing mission of mercy. Gorica never dreamed of such blessings. She is truly amazed.

Our Mission in Ukraine

We're rolling a quilt of care across Ukraine. Each square represents a shelter, a volunteer, a sanctuary—doing their best to care for more animals than ever. We continue to offer food, veterinary care and general support with the costs of care. Here are just a few examples:

We're getting pet food out as far and wide as possible.

This shelter in Kyiv is so thankful to receive bags of kibble.

This farm in Kharkiv was provided with hay for the animals plus a generator to pump water during frequent power outages. Watch the uplifting video!

This rescuer Svitlana suffers from a very bad back after many years of heavy lifting at her job at the local grocery store, but the pain does not stop her from caring for a large number of animals. She lives in an apartment and the neighbors get angry at her for feeding the homeless animals outside. She allows them to take shelter in the basement of the building now that snow is falling. We have helped with food for all the animals she cares for.

Our beloved teammates at the Ugolyok Farm Sanctuary were so grateful to have our help rescuing 14 sheep who were hog tied in the back of carts and headed for slaughter. The sheep happily scurried into the rescue center barn when they were untied. Much more work lies ahead of us in Ukraine.

Woman Flees into Forest with Hundreds of Dogs, Cats and Horses

Krasimira Spasova (Krassy) with her rescue dogs

Years ago, Krasimira Spasova (Krassy) lived in a Bulgarian village in her lovely grandmother's house. She started with about a dozen dogs and cats she had saved from terrible circumstances, but soon the word began to spread about her sweetness, and before long, neighbor after neighbor began abandoning animals at her gate. It didn't take long for the number of animals to swell, and those same neighbors started complaining and threatening to poison the animals.

To save herself and the animals, Krassy was forced to flee to the wilderness. Strong and determined, she bought a dilapidated house in a remote mountain area. No road. No running water. No warmth. Krassy braved the cold and isolation to stay true to the animals to whom she promised lifelong protection.

"Here in Bulgaria, the situation with homeless animals is very scary and the streets are full of hungry, beaten, run over, shot, and tortured animals," volunteer Lyudmila Lyubenova explains. "But not all people here are bad. Many happy animals saved from the street are living free and happy thanks to an angel named Krasimira."

"Even in her remote area, every day people dump new animals to her, puppies, old dogs, babies in boxes and bags, pregnant mothers, and sick or unfit hunting dogs," Lyudmila continues. "She has no strength and no means, but she cannot let them die, thrown out in the middle of nowhere. The number of rescued animals is getting bigger and bigger. The cost of treatment and castration to clinics is piling up and Krassy is powerless to stop this avalanche. Although she has managed to find homes for more than 200 dogs, people in the area keep dumping their animals around the rescue center."

"For 2 years Krassy has been trying to raise funds to drill the upper area and to not have to carry water in bottles for miles. The amount needed is about $6,000. Before drilling, however, a fence has to be made for the dogs in the upper area so that they are not run over by heavy machinery when drilling begins. The fence is almost ready with a lot of effort put into it, but there is still a little more to go and time is running out. Soon winter will come and Krassy and all the rescued souls will be left in the ice trap of winter, with no food, no water, no road, and no heating for her. After12-15 hours of work she'll have to go home to a freezing house. In winter the food trucks can't go there. It becomes an icy nightmare with 300 dogs, 10 horses, many cats, and one woman alone in the icy winter. Please help, winter is coming and it is scary and hopeless..."

Krassy hasn't had a true Christmas in many years, but on Sunday morning, we would like to surprise her with the news of a big donation to drill the well (possibly in the spring if it can't be done immediately) and to hopefully buy a warm stove and pay some veterinary expenses. She is one of those invisible heroes that no one has heard of, but who is doing gold-medal rescue work. Perhaps her day has finally arrived. We would love to help her. To help Krassy, you can donate to our Winter Rescue fund.